Meeting held to tackle the issue of coastal erosion at Portrane beach

Published by Laura Matjusaityte on

June 14th, 2018

Fingal County Council held a meeting last week to discuss potential solutions to stop coastal erosion at Portrane beach due to fears over health and safety issues.

At the meeting, engineers from the Council met with representatives from National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) and Office of Public Work (OPW) and presented a new analysis of the nature and extent of erosion of the sand dunes at Portrane.

Coastal erosion at Portrane has been an issue for many years, with damage caused by Storm Emma earlier this year forcing some locals to abandon their homes.

The Council indicated that the impact of Storm Emma caused an increase in coastal erosion and flooding in the area and outlined the need for long-term measures to ensure coastal protection in upcoming months.

The Minister of State of the Office of Public Works, Kevin “Boxer” Moran, also visited Portrane and expressed his appreciation to the concerns of the local residents facing the problem of erosion.

Mr Moran called for a viable plan to be developed and implemented as soon as possible to ease concerns of all those affected.

In a statement to The Green News, the council said that their assessment is “currently in train” and expect this process to “take several months”.

“We will, however, brief the Coastal Liaison Group at the beginning in July in relation to the assessment process and on any proposed interim measures,” the statement continued.

The council, NPWS and OPW will meet again next month with more detailed plans to manage erosion at the coast.

Flooding in Donegal

Mr Moran also met with Donegal County Council last week to discuss arrangements for flooding relief scheme in the county.

The Minister approved an application from Donegal County Council for €175,000 under the OPW’s Minor Flood Relief Works and Coastal Protection Scheme.

According to the OPW, this funding will protect vulnerable areas of Ballybofey, including clearance works on the existing river embankment and measures to protect properties from future flooding events.

The Government has committed to investing nearly €1 billion for flood relief over the next decade under Project Ireland 2040.

Mr Moran said that the State is “committed” to ensuring that it delivers flood relief solutions in the “shortest possible timeframe”.

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Laura Matjusaityte

Laura is a first-year journalism student at DIT. She has an interest in the environment, veganism and literature.